TO CHEW ON: "Hear this, you who trample the needy and do away with the poor of the land .... I will never forget anything they have done." Amos 8:4,7
In Israel King Jehu was followed by his son and grandson. They were all evil. Now a new king, Jeroboam II, was ruling Israel. Outwardly everything was going well. Crops had been good. Many people were getting rich. They loved their beautiful homes and their lovely things. Some people were poor. But they didn’t matter, did they?
With that attitude, the rich were secretly cheating the poor. When they sold grain to them, they didn’t put the full amount in the bags, but raised the price. Sometimes they put the sweepings or the garbage from the bottom of the wheat bin into the bag and charged for that too.God saw this unfairness. He called a shepherd named Amos. He sent Amos to be a prophet to Israel.
Amos boldly spoke about what was going on. He told the people in Israel to get back to obeying God’s Word. In the law, God had listed many ways for the Israelites to look after poor people. They were to measure fairly, charge fair prices and even leave some grain unharvested in their fields so poor people could gather it for themselves.
Amos warned them that if they didn’t again obey God’s words and turn back to Him, God would send a famine. This famine wouldn’t be a lack of food, but a famine of God’s words. When they needed God, He would be silent.
Do we have poor people in our land? Maybe there are homeless people who live on the streets of your city. Other people may have homes but don’t have money for food, clothes and medical care. God wants us to care for the poor just like in Amos’s time. We make Him glad when we do whatever we can to help them.
PRAYER: Dear God, Please give me your love for the poor. Help me to do all I can to help them. Amen.
MORE: Helping the Poor
1. Find out what’s happening in your community to help the poor. Can you add more things to the list?
- Is there a Foodbank?
- Are there thrift stores?
- Are there soup kitchens?
- Are there homeless shelters?
2. What can you do to help the poor? Here are some ideas. Can you think of more?
- Volunteer to help at a soup kitchen with your family.
- Help serve Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner at a mission,
- Donate food to the food bank.
- Donate blankets to a homeless shelter.
- Donate clothes and toys to a thrift store.
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Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture quotations are taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
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